Far Cry Primal livestream is two hours of previews and prattle

Far Cry Primal is fast approaching its loin cloth-laden March 1 PC release date (we’re all getting a week later than those console ruffians to allow time for an extra coat of polish) and while it might not be bringing co-op with it, it will go rather easy on our engines.

The latest Far Cry Primal community stream lasts two hours, covers a number of the game’s features, and gives a proper glimpse into what surviving in the Stone Age is all about.

Creative director Jean-Christophe Guyot, lead writer Kévin Shortt and concept artist Naomi Savoie take centre stage in the stream which dissects how you’ll get around in the fictional land of Oros, the differing languages and dialects – none of which will be subtitled – and how stealth and hunting mechanics work. Here’s the stream in its entirety, but the Hunter Vision feature in action is an interesting talking point at around the one hour 15 mark:

For all I’ve largely enjoyed the Far Cry games (for the record – the third and fourth are far superior to the second, regardless of what anyone else might tell you), I’ve always found crafting in the series a bit tedious. Given how capable the protagonists are and how quickly they take to murder, exploration and survival, I’ve always thought gathering materials to ‘build’ a haversack by selecting a few menu options was a bit redundant. Why not just steal a bag from the multitude of outposts you turn over? It doesn’t make much sense.

With that said, given the context of Primal’s setting, I expect crafting to play a much larger part this time round wherein I expect it to make sense. This is addressed directly in the stream. “We’ve created the experience of surviving in the Stone Age,” says creative director Jean-Christophe Guyot. “At the beginning of the game you’re almost naked – you don’t have a lot of tools at your disposal, you’re in a very dire situation and you have to survive the savage lands of Oros.

“It starts with food, you don’t have a lot of weapons, it’s up to you to craft more things. But, as you start to progress, learn beast mastery, conquer the land, you have a options that open up to you. You can ride bears, the sabretooth tiger and the mammoth.”

This sense of raw survival excites me, so long as it’s dealt with in the right manner – something John echoed in his hands-on last year.